Chapter 5

Bianca had been complaining about that same Hermès bag on social media for weeks.

It wasn't just expensive. It was nearly impossible to get unless you were one of the boutique's most valued clients.

And now Lorenzo thought a few soft words would convince me to hand mine over to her.

Ridiculous.

I didn't answer him. I simply let the makeup artist finish.

Yesterday, after speaking with my parents, I'd made one more call.

Matteo De Santis.

The boy who had followed me everywhere when we were children.

The boy who used to call me his big sister no matter how many times I told him to stop.

We hadn't seen each other in years.

I'd heard enough about him to know that the boy I remembered no longer existed. The De Santis name had risen quickly over the past few years, and Matteo had risen even faster.

But I didn't know the man he'd become.

When I asked him to stand beside me at the altar today, there had been several seconds of silence on the other end of the line.

Then he'd asked only one question.

"What time?"

That was all.

Once my makeup was finished, I changed into my wedding gown.

When I stepped out of the dressing room, Lorenzo was sitting in front of another mirror, telling the makeup artist to fix his hair.

I stopped her.

"Don't bother."

Lorenzo looked at me through the mirror.

I met his eyes.

"He's only a guest today."

The room went silent.

Lorenzo slowly turned in his chair.

"What did you just say?"

I didn't answer.

There was nothing left to explain.

I turned and walked out.

Lorenzo immediately followed.

"Adriana."

I kept walking.

"What the hell does that mean?"

His footsteps quickened behind me.

"What do you mean I'm a guest?"

By the time we reached the ballroom, members of the Romano and Valente families were already filling the room. Representatives from several allied Families stood in small groups beneath the chandeliers, talking quietly as they waited for the ceremony to begin.

My father stood near the front greeting guests.

My mother saw me and smiled.

I had barely taken another step when the massive screen behind the stage flickered to life.

The room gradually fell silent.

I looked up.

My face appeared on the screen.

Then the video began.

For a second, I couldn't understand what I was looking at.

The woman's face was mine.

Her body wasn't.

The footage was explicit.

And fake.

But under the ballroom lights, projected across a screen large enough for hundreds of people to see, the distinction didn't matter.

Gasps swept through the room.

My mother's smile vanished.

My father went completely still.

"What the hell is this?"

His voice cut through the ballroom.

Before anyone could answer, Bianca appeared from the side of the stage.

One hand flew dramatically to her mouth.

"Oh God."

Her eyes widened as she looked from the screen to me.

"Adriana, I'm so sorry. I meant to play that video of you and Lorenzo kissing. I don't know how this got mixed in."

Mixed in.

As though an explicit fabricated video of me had somehow wandered into her files by accident.

I turned toward her.

Before I could speak, Lorenzo slipped an arm around my waist.

Anyone watching might have mistaken the gesture for support.

Then his fingers dug into my side.

Hard.

He lowered his mouth to my ear.

"Smile."

My entire body stiffened.

"Lorenzo."

"You're going to walk down that aisle, marry me, and forget whatever you thought you were planning."

His voice was almost gentle.

"If you don't, that video won't stay in this ballroom."

My blood went cold.

He continued quietly.

"By tonight, every Family from New York to Sicily will have a copy."

I slowly turned my head.

"You knew about this?"

Lorenzo didn't answer.

He didn't need to.

Around us, phones were already coming out.

Guests whispered furiously while several younger associates lifted their cameras toward the screen. Whether they believed the footage or not no longer mattered.

Once it left this room, the damage would be done.

Then several men I didn't recognize pushed closer.

They shouldn't have been anywhere near a Romano family wedding.

Which meant someone had gotten them inside.

One of them raised his phone directly toward my face.

"So that's the Romano princess?"

Another laughed.

"Looks like Valente got more than he bargained for."

My hands began to shake.

Not from shame.

From rage.

Lorenzo and Bianca had prepared this.

Maybe they hadn't expected to use it today.

Maybe it had only been insurance.

Something to keep me obedient if I ever became inconvenient.

My mother suddenly swayed.

Her hand flew to her chest.

"Mom!"

My father caught her before she hit the floor.

I moved toward them, but the crowd shifted at the same time.

Phones surrounded me.

Questions came from every direction.

"Is the video real?"

"Does Valente know?"

"How many men have seen you like that?"

Someone behind me laughed.

"Maybe she'll make another one."

My stomach twisted.

I pushed forward.

"Move."

No one listened.

I searched for Lorenzo.

He wasn't beside me anymore.

He was several feet away.

With Bianca.

One arm was wrapped around her shoulders, shielding her as people crowded around them.

As though she were the one being humiliated.

As though she were the one who needed protection.

I stared at him.

Something inside me finally went silent.

Then the screen went black.

The speakers died.

Every light except the chandeliers remained still.

A sharp crack cut through the ballroom.

The man closest to me dropped his phone and stumbled backward, blood running from his mouth.

Another reached toward me.

A hand caught his wrist before he could touch me.

He was thrown aside so hard that he crashed into a table.

Glasses shattered against the floor.

The crowd recoiled.

Then someone near the entrance whispered a name.

"De Santis."

The effect was immediate.

Men who had been shouting seconds ago fell silent.

The crowd parted.

A tall man in a perfectly cut black suit walked through the opening.

Several men followed behind him, but he didn't look back at any of them.

He didn't need to.

For a moment, I didn't recognize him.

The boy I remembered had been lean and restless, forever following two steps behind me with scraped knuckles and a grin that usually meant trouble.

That boy was gone.

The man walking toward me had broad shoulders, a cold expression, and the kind of presence that made armed men move out of his way without being asked.

Then his eyes met mine.

And I knew him.

Matteo De Santis.

He crossed the ballroom without looking at Lorenzo.

Without looking at Bianca.

He came directly to me.

His gaze moved over my face, then briefly to the screen behind me.

Something dangerous flickered in his eyes.

But when he looked at me again, it disappeared.

Matteo stopped in front of me.

"You call me after all these years and ask me to show up at your wedding..."

His gaze dropped to my dress.

Then he looked over my shoulder toward Lorenzo.

"...and somehow, you're already in trouble before I even get here."

That familiar hint of amusement appeared in his eyes.

For the first time that morning, I could see something of the boy I remembered.

He held out his hand.

"Come on, Adriana."

I looked down at it.

Matteo's smile deepened.

"You asked me to be the groom."

His eyes returned to mine.

"Don't tell me you're changing your mind now."